Unemployment in Singapore rises, while retrenchments grow by more than 30% in Q218

According to MOM figures released on Thursday (13 Sep), Singapore's labour market showed signs of slowing down. The second quarter of 2018 (Q2 2018) saw both higher unemployment and more retrenchments.

The number of retrenchments rose by a staggering 30% to 3,030, as compared to 2,320 in the previous quarter. According to MOM, the top reasons for retrenchment are business restructuring and reorganisation. For retrenched residents, the six-month re-entry rate was 64.3%.

Netizen Shaolin Fs believed that the actual figure was much higher: "I know friends who are asked to rein as their project was cancelled by the client. The company didn't offer some compensation but as it is [classified as a] resignation; it will not contribute to retrenchment figures"

Overall, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for residents rose slightly by 0.1% to 2.1% in Q2 2018. Correspondingly, the long-term unemployment rate edged up from 0.7% in March to 0.8% in June.

As of June, there were 67,300 residents and 59,800 citizens unemployed.

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